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Essay on The Existence Of God

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The Three Most Popular Arguments For The Existence Of God

The Ontological Argument

One of the most important attempts to demonstrate the existence of God is the ontological argument of Saint Anselm, an 11th-century theologian. Anselm’s argument maintains that God, defined as the greatest being that can be conceived, must exist, since a being that does not exist would by virtue of that fact lack an attribute that contributes to its greatness. Critics have questioned, however, whether existence actually contributes to a being’s greatness.
The Cosmological Argument

Another important attempt to provide a rational justification for the existence of God is the cosmological argument, also called the argument from first cause. Aquinas and …show more content…

Although contemporary theists, such as American philosopher William Lane Craig, maintain that a first cause is necessary to explain the big bang, critics contend that recent scientific theories indicate that the universe could have arisen spontaneously.
The Teleological Argument

According to the teleological argument for the existence of God—also known as the argument from design—the universe is like a machine. The best-known supporter of this view is 18th-century theologian William Paley. According to this theory, because machines are created by intelligent beings, and because the universe may be thought of as a single, highly complex machine, it is likely that the universe was created by a great intelligence, understood to be God. The classic critique of this argument, presented by 18th-century Scottish philosopher David Hume, maintains that the analogy to a machine is weak and that other analogies are just as strong. For instance, the universe may be thought of as a living organism, in which case the universe would have been created by reproduction rather than by design.

Which argument do I agree with?

I think that the ontological argument is not really making an argument for the existence of God, but is really playing with the fact that it is impossible for humanity to define a being we are not sure exists. Therefore, if you go by his definition God does exist. However, how do we define God? Is God the greatest being or is he simply the creator of the

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